Category Archives: IVF

As time passes, the process of trying to conceive becomes consuming and often obsessive. Those who are struggling look on in envy, and in some cases despair, when they hear stories of other people’s “oops” pregnancies or birth announcements for a family’s 6th or 7th child.

Feelings of powerlessness and of not being able to control the process turn to thoughts of “what am I doing wrong?” and “how can I fix this?” It is very hard to be passive, because the intrusive thoughts whisper “what if I find out it was something simple and I did nothing and now the time has passed?”

I attended a group session with our fertility clinic a couple of years ago to provide feedback on their service and what improvements could be made.

I shared a view on how I felt clinic appointments were scheduled for staff convenience, rather than patient focused. I gave an example of how I had a very flexible job but for certain appointments the clinic insisted they only took place at times where I had to be at work and therefore required permission from my manager to attend. My preference would have been to avoid sharing the details of my personal life with my colleagues, which would have been necessary to secure the time off to attend the clinic. Continue reading I do not want to talk to you about my fertility treatment→

You may remember the infamous toilet scene from Trainspotting where our hero Renton finds himself so desperate for a hit that he resorts to some opium suppositories. What follows is three minutes of every germaphobe’s worst public toilet nightmare. Sure take a look:

This is the fourth post in my Dear IVF Diary series. If you’re just joining me, then I recommend that you start here.You’ll find all related entries at the end of this post. Thanks for reading! x

Seven days after the embryo transfer, I was sitting at my desk at work when I got this sensation in my thighs. It was barely noticeable but all too familiar, one that I’ve always associated with the start of my period. A trip to the bathroom provided some relief when a knicker check was clear. Continue reading IVF Diary: Unpleasant presence→